The present invention relates to an improved pattern exposing apparatus of the type used in the fabricating processes of large scale integration (LSI) devices using fine patterns.
In processing semiconductor devices, each semiconductor substrate (silicon wafer) is given a specific identification mark for the purpose of carrying out strict quality control and process control for high integration semiconductor devices, such as LSIs, fabricated in the silicon wafer. It has been the practice to manually put an identification mark on each wafer prior to the fabricating process, particularly in a prestage of the photolithographic process, or an identification mark is formed on each wafer with an identification marking machine, such as a wafer identifier. However, such marking operation is not only complicated, but may cause contamination on the wafer, resulting eventually in a fall in the yield of production.